I'm back... I started shopping away from GM, thinking a Tundra was a better vehicle... Well, the Tundra turned into the tacoma in my shopping (cheaper truck = bigger house), and then the tacoma turned into the ridgeline (honda = solid solid reputation, and toyota=possible hit in resale value??).

I dabbled looking at the fords again (said to have great quality these days), but it was short-lived...

Now, I've come full-circle back to GM.

My question is as follows: what differences are there between Silverado LTZ with the 6.2 and the Denali? My truck will be mostly a mall crawler, with the occasional ATV in the back, and occasional boat on tow.

if you can afford a denali go with it, they're the best looking trucks on the road. they have a denali exclusive wood pattern on the dash and heated steering wheel. matching bumpers. the denali grille and rims. 6.2l is fast, it'll beat a tundra, and i think denali's have different suspension

As far as I know it would just be the AWD (more HP with the Denali?), and the interior/exterior trim.

I bought my 08 SD, because I wanted the AWD, 6.2L, and 6 speed. The latter 2 are available in their other trucks now.

When I did the GM site build thingy, it as for pricing, the Denali ended up being the same price as a fully loaded Sierra (with all the extras, and not getting the AWD, 6.2l and 6 speed). At least at the time it was.

Denali. Nuance leather, AWD (for your application would be more desirable) and heated steering wheel with much nicer "faux" wood trim lol. I liked the denali so much more than the Tahoe LTZ i traded it in only 5mos old and bought the Denali.

I am not sure if it applies to the GM AWDs, but everything AWD that I ever owned seemed to like the taste of fuel, a lot more than I liked feeding it. I do love the 6.2L. So I kind of second the notion of a loaded SLT4 pkg Crew Cab GMC with the 6.2 and part time 4wd. My personal favorite looking GM truck is the GMC All terain pkg trucks, where you still get some of the denallie trim work on the outside, but you also get the part time 4wd.

I've been going through this same decision myself lately. I've pretty much decided against any current model besides the Denali. Primarily because I'm not a huge fan of AFM and that's the only way you can get the 5.3L now. I figure I'll just wait until they release the trucks with the direct injection and hope they drop AFM or make it an option again. At the same time though I'm not convinced I want to get into a truck that pricey thinking I'd be concerned to ever use it as a "truck". Decisions decisions

So here is my rationale behind why the Denali is the way to go. First, you get the 6.2L with no AFM, and 4 wheel disc brakes. It also seems like this is the only way to get the more MPG friendly 3.42 rear gear with the 6.2L. You also get nicer exterior with the Denali specific grilles along with chrome door handles, side moldings and painted bumpers. You also get "chromed aluminum" 20" wheels instead of the "chrome clad aluminum" aka chrome->plastic->aluminum that is prevalent on the other models. On the inside you get nicer leather, little nicer door panels, fake wood accents, carpeted floor mats, adjustable pedals? and the 6 disc CD/MP3 player. The base price difference is about $4k. If you "want" the 6.2L anyway, then the rest of the pkg makes it almost a "value" even though that seems crazy in the context of a 46k+ truck .

I've been going through this same decision myself lately. I've pretty much decided against any current model besides the Denali. Primarily because I'm not a huge fan of AFM and that's the only way you can get the 5.3L now. I figure I'll just wait until they release the trucks with the direct injection and hope they drop AFM or make it an option again. At the same time though I'm not convinced I want to get into a truck that pricey thinking I'd be concerned to ever use it as a "truck". Decisions decisions

So here is my rationale behind why the Denali is the way to go. First, you get the 6.2L with no AFM, and 4 wheel disc brakes. It also seems like this is the only way to get the more MPG friendly 3.42 rear gear with the 6.2L. You also get nicer exterior with the Denali specific grilles along with chrome door handles, side moldings and painted bumpers. You also get "chromed aluminum" 20" wheels instead of the "chrome clad aluminum" aka chrome->plastic->aluminum that is prevalent on the other models. On the inside you get nicer leather, little nicer door panels, fake wood accents, carpeted floor mats, adjustable pedals? and the 6 disc CD/MP3 player. The base price difference is about $4k. If you "want" the 6.2L anyway, then the rest of the pkg makes it almost a "value" even though that seems crazy in the context of a 46k+ truck .

John

All good arguments, I'd say... Although I would tend to agree that I wouldn't be as tempted to use the truck as a truck... Heck, I'd be worried about parking the damn thing, which may be a reason I shy away from the denali, and more towards the extended cab LTZ silvy... Maybe with the 6.2L option..

or maybe I'll just go absolutely blasphemous, and get the Ridgeline I've been cross-shopping as well

I would definetely go with the LTZ. The Denali is full time 4wd. A buddy of mine has an 09, and it just drives different. He was averaging 15.5 mpg on the truck computer, which i think is pretty good. Another buddy of mine has decked Tundra, its nice but the interior doesnt compare to the silverado/sierra and the gas mileage is horrible. Another plus with the ltz is the auto 4wd, i have a sierra sle and a silverado ltz and for me, that auto 4wd is money in my part of the country. I love being able to be in rwd/2wd when i want and auto/4hi when i want. My vote is definetly LTZ!Jan_Mar_363.jpg209.09KB20 downloadsIMG00032_20100227_1311.jpg80.52KB16 downloads